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Around the Block, August CKC

Tuesday, 25 September 2012

Has it? Or not? The days are still unusually warm. Shorts weather at the end of September? Unheard of in northern Alberta. I am begining to long for the crispness of a frosty morning. However, the lengthening darkness signals the trees to change colour and the birds to pack up their nests and head south.

Oh, little ladybug; where will you go when the frost arrives?

A veiw of my home from the road.

The colours are changing on the inside too. What's on your kitchen table?

The carpenter pencils have been hanging about for a couple week. I always forget to take them with me when I head to the garage. I think I will keep forgetting for awhile longer.

Friday, 21 September 2012

We had a surprise visit from grandson #2 this past weekend. The ensuing
activity of a impromptu birthday party with cousins, visiting other
relatives and then returning him home has kept me away from the regular
routines.

His home is about 9 hours away. That is, if you don't stop. But stop we
did, to gaze and wonder at the beautiful mountains in Banff National
Park.

And then through Kootney National Park.

With a stop for a dip in Radium Hot Springs

photo from tripadvisor.ca

And home again, home again, jiggity jig.

I got to view two vintage Shasta campers, on the way home.

One in rough shape with all it's "shastaness" still intact. The other, in better condition but stripped of all identifying features except the magazine rack. :S

So today is laundry and catch-up and lots of emails and blogs to read. This weekend I hope to stay put at home. Although the leaves are changing colour, summery weather continues. Still no sign of frost in the forecast so I will feed and water the flowers again. And take some more pictures.

Thursday, 13 September 2012

One week into CKC kit At Season's End and I am at the end of it! 22 single page layouts. Two double page layouts. For a total of 26 pages.

A stack of scrappy goodness

Pages made from my At Season's End kit

Then there are the left-overs

I will make some more journal cards from the bits.

However this pile goes back into the stash.

1. Did use more than six of my pre-made journal cards. yeah!
2. Used some of the lace borders. These ones were too feminine for the mostly boy related pages.
3. Didn't intend to finish the twine, ruler tape or the paper clips. But they were all used on at least one layout.
4. The patterned paper, which was snuck into the add-on set because I thought it looked good with the other papers, never looked good with any of the chosen photos. Since it was not represented in the inspiration kit, I do not consider it a fail that I am returning it to the stash.
5. Two title stickers and the fabric flower invention are the only parts I feel should have got used, but didn't.
6. Also left over were journal spots and phrases from the Echo Park, Bella Road, For the Record, Noteworthy paper. I will re-work them into the 3X4 journal cards before they go back into the stash
7. And there is about half a page of K & Company, Danny O, Polka Dots Flat. Hmmm...it could pair up with the fabric flower, felt paper clips and the Because of you title for one last hurrah. Maybe tomorrow.

One other thing that may be of interest to you. I believe I coined a couple of new scrapping terms. These layout are "cousins". They are individually unique of themselves and can stand alone. However, when they are placed together, you can't help yourself from comparing their similarities and differences.

Where as these layouts are "sisters" Again, single page layouts that are each unique but more similar than cousins. When side-by-side, they support each other and are possibly stronger as a unit.

Any two of these three work well together as a two page layout.

For a look at each of this weeks 24 layouts, please go to my flickr photostream. There is a tab at the top of this blog, to take you there.

Wednesday, 12 September 2012

The idea to make"Project Life" style journal cards came from a CKC blog in July and I jumped right in. The first round I made these. I have been using them on my layouts this month. Last night I just couldn't find the right "something, something" for the page under construction, so I whipped up some more.

And because I have too much fun, making these little miniature layouts, I made these.

How too? Cut your base paper, (the lined paper) to 3X4. Stick on some bits of off cuts in a pleasing manner. Add embelishments and/or stitching as you wish. Washi tape, button, fabric daisy trim, doodling are on the lower set. Stitching, button, twine, fabric daisy trim on the top set. Snip corners with corner rounder and they are ready to enjoy!

Use to brighten your day! Journal cards, book marks, lunch box notes, to-do lists, shopping lists, gift tags. Do you have any other ideas, on how to use these? Please share.

Tuesday, 11 September 2012

This is the third month in a row, that I have participated with theCounterfeit Kit Challenge blog. And it is exciting to see the pages develop. This month's combinations of patterned papers is stretching my creative muscle. Plus I am working with photos that haven't been scrapped because they had me stumped. They are mostly four years old and sit in a box on the desk. I flick through them from time to time and say to myself, "I gotta get these stories down." and then move on to something else that proves to be less challenging.

It turns out that odd (to me) paper combinations and left-over photos play well together. I have been snipping and pasting for a week now and have 17 layouts finished, with four more creations queuing up.

The thing that I am excited about and want to share today, though, are the "counterfeit embellishments" that I have made. This it the first time I have followed along with the tutorials on CKC and also copied items directly from the inspiration kit at Birds of a Feather. Here are some of the dandies:

Paper Bows on paper clips

Paper Bow clip, on layout

White frame on kraft

White frame on craft, finished.

kraft note envelope and ribbon bow on paper clip

fabric banner

felt flower

bow on paper clip

another bow on paper clip

Kraft note envelope

Another note envelope

fabric banner

another fabric banner

making the fabric banner

Patterned Washi

The one thing I didn't try to counterfeit, was the wire hangers. But since I did mimic so many of the kit items, when I got to shop at a scrapbook boutique yesterday, I picked up these:

Also picked up up this whole pile of scrappy goodness.

The coolest thing was the war time ration book. What a delightful piece of authentic ephemera.

Hope you enjoyed the peek at the pages. Full reveal will be made soon.

Wednesday, 5 September 2012

TheCounterfeit Kit Challenge reveal for September is the Birds of a Feather kit for August 2012. I gathered my papers and embellies in record time. As always, I am intrigued by the colour combos and pattern mixes as left to my own devises, I would never combine these products, yet here I have it all in my abundant stash. Excuse me while I take a moment to reflect on the acronym on the post-it, I keep beside the computer. S.E.L.E. (Stash Exceeds Life Expectancy)

Ok, i'm back. When I put the papers together, it brought to mind the brights and the darks of my pots of annuals that are getting tired here at the end of summer, yet still pushing out blossoms. To honour the beauty they have given of themselves since May, (pansies since April) I am calling this, my September CKC kit, At Season's End

That brings to mind a time when I was about 5 or 6 and I told my mom I wanted a beigey purple coat. She said there was no such colour. It was a long time before I learned that my imaginary colour had a name. There might be a layout on that.

Add-on embellies

In the add-on papers, there is a page of tickets and tokens. I will use tickets I got off etsy.
Stickers, Glitz, love games titles.
Replacing the kit's memorabilia pockets with journal cards I made a while back using bits and snips. I will aim to use 6 of these cards.
Felt flowers, Hero Arts
Adhesive boarders, K & Company, Que Sera Sera